Luxembourg, 15/04/2002 (Agence Europe) - As at each General Affairs Council, the Fifteen took stock of the latest developments in the Balkans. Ministers first of all welcomed the adoption by the parliaments of Serbia and Montenegro of the first points for re-arranging relations between Serbia and Montenegro, the governments of which decided, on 14 March in Belgrade, to replace the Yugoslav Federation by the State of Serbia and Montenegro. The Council's conclusions recall that the European Union is ready to support this process "in the context of the stabilisation and association process". The Fifteen state in their conclusions that the agreement, whereby Montenegro renounces to take its independence, mainly under European pressure, "brings the prospect of negotiation and the conclusion of a stabilisation and association agreement closer". The Fifteen mainly insisted on the fact that one of the preconditions for signing this political and commercial agreement is stability of the institutions without separation from Montenegro. The Council adds that it hopes the meetings of the joint advisory committee will allow sufficient progress to be made in the discussions for the Commission to be able to launch a feasibility study on launching negotiations. While the Commission pointed out that it hoped to conduct this study in the autumn of this year to launch negotiations next year, the Council does not commit itself to dates. Some countries, including France, requested that negotiations should begin far sooner, but the majority considered it was necessary to wait for the constitutional reform process to be consolidated. The Council also noted "progress" made by Yugoslavia in its economic and political reforms.
The Council also welcomed the agreement reached between political leaders of Bosnia-Herzegovina "on implementation of the decision by the Constitutional Court" on the peoples that make up the country. It stressed the role played by High Representative Wolfgang Petritsch in reaching an agreement. The Council calls on the parliaments of both Bosnian and Serb entities to approve as soon as possible the constitutional mandates necessary for this agreement to be implemented. Bosnia-Herzegovina will thus have accomplished an important step towards its European future, the Fifteen declared. The Council stressed the importance for Bosnia-Herzegovina to accomplish the necessary reforms to be able to begin negotiating a stabilisation and association agreement.
In its conclusions, the Council also insisted on the rapid return to their homeland of "over one million people still displaced throughout the region due to the conflict". The Council welcomes, in this respect, the improved relations between Belgrade, Zagreb and Sarajevo. The Council again placed emphasis on the need to strengthen regional cooperation. It noted the first annual report of the European Commission on the stabilisation and association process (EUROPE of 5 April, p.10), and decided to forward it to its working groups in order to adopt conclusions on this process during a forthcoming Council.